AI-generated images are creating new landscapes and cityscapes, capable of inspiring awe or fear.
Planetizen founder Chris Steins recently published a Medium post collecting 20 AI-generated images of cities that push the boundaries of imagination.
For the uninitiated, Steins helpfully provides this description of how AI-generated images work:
An AI image generation service creates images using a machine learning technique called Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs). To create images of cities, the AI is trained on images of cities, and then it can generate new images of a future city based on a prompt — a set of words or phrases provided by the image creator. The AI algorithm uses a feedback loop to improve the images it produces, making them increasingly realistic.
The post, linked below, showcases 20 images, varying from a “Cyberpunk Barcelona” to versions of New York that replace rooftops and streets with trees.
FULL STORY: From Cyberpunk Barcelona to Neo Tokyo: 20 AI-Generated Cities You Have to See
Friday Eye Candy: AI Envisions Solutions to the Challenges Facing Cities
Phoenix reimagined for shade. Los Angeles as a place where everybody walks. San Francisco with affordable housing. AI makes a vision of the future possible.
Friday Eye Candy: The Seattle Skyline of the Near Future
A series of renderings by a Seattle architect shows the recently completed high-rises, along with under construction, proposed, and rumored projects. Seattle is changing, quickly.
Friday Eye Candy: The Cars of the Future, Envisioned by Children
Ten children, ages six through 12, were asked to draw the cars of the future, and then a professional illustrator touched up their ideas.
What ‘The Brutalist’ Teaches Us About Modern Cities
How architecture and urban landscapes reflect the trauma and dysfunction of the post-war experience.
‘Complete Streets’ Webpage Deleted in Federal Purge
Basic resources and information on building bike lanes and sidewalks, formerly housed on the government’s Complete Streets website, are now gone.
The VW Bus is Back — Now as an Electric Minivan
Volkswagen’s ID. Buzz reimagines its iconic Bus as a fully electric minivan, blending retro design with modern technology, a 231-mile range, and practical versatility to offer a stylish yet functional EV for the future.
Healing Through Parks: Altadena’s Path to Recovery After the Eaton Fire
In the wake of the Eaton Fire, Altadena is uniting to restore Loma Alta Park, creating a renewed space for recreation, community gathering, and resilience.
San Diego to Rescind Multi-Unit ADU Rule
The city wants to close a loophole that allowed developers to build apartment buildings on single-family lots as ADUs.
Electric Vehicles for All? Study Finds Disparities in Access and Incentives
A new UCLA study finds that while California has made progress in electric vehicle adoption, disadvantaged communities remain underserved in EV incentives, ownership, and charging access, requiring targeted policy changes to advance equity.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
City of Albany
UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research